Buffing-machine.



10.849,338. PATBNTBD APR.2, 1907. A. W. RUGBRS.

BUFFING MACHINE. APPLIOATION rILBnsEPT. 14,1906.

z SHEETS-snm 1.

PATENTED APR. 2, 1907.

2 SHBETB--SHEET 2.

UNITED STATES PATENT clinica.A

ANDREW W. ROGERS, OF BEVERLY, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGN OR TO SIDNEY W. WIN SLOW, TRUSTEE, OF BEVERLY, MASSACHUSETTS.

BUFFINGFMACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Applioationled September 14, 1908. Serial No. 384.687.

Patented Api-i12, v19o?. f

-figures thaw This'invention relates to machines for operat `on the bottoms of boots and shoes, and

particularly to that type of machines which lscharacterized by a bufling or abrading device comprising a pneumatic support and an vabrasive covering.

` The invention 1s herein shown as embodied lin a machine in which a buiiing device for o rating on the shoe-bottom is applied to t e lower end face of a vertical rotary spindle.

In the operation of finishing shoe-bottoms itis `customary, to treat the surfaces to be finished with a bufling device comprising a supporting member and a coarse abrasive covering, of sandpaper, emery-cloth, carborundum, or the like, to remove the glaze from` the grain of the leather. The shoe-bottom is then treated with a cleaning device comprising a pneumatic support having a finer abrasive covering toclean the surface of the leather, remove anyscratchesor marks left by the bufling operation, and rub u the nap formed by the fibers of the buffe leather,

thus the surface a velvety appearance. It is the practice in most factories to use for b the leather a su porting member havy in P this portion of the shoe, and the thick'lower' wall maintains the form of the support when it is filled with air under `ressure. The

pneumatic support commo y used in `the cle operation has a. rounded edge and which are distended by the air to form a cleaning device which is free from angles that might abrade the work unevenly and which is sufiiciently soft and yieldin to ent portions of the shoe-bottom presented to it. It is usually preferredv to maintain a higher pressure of air in the neumatic support of the cleaning device tiian in the sup- -port of the bung device, as the air' serves mainly as a cushion in the latter lsupport without materially distending the support.

Heretofore it has been necessary to treat the shoes by a machine equi ped with a bufling device adapted for buigng the bottoms and thento disconnect the machine from its driving mechanism, Wait for it to come to rest, remove the support and abrasive covering used for bufiing, and replace these parts with a neumatic support and covering adapted or cleaning. When this had been done, the air-supplying mechanism had to be adjusted and the machine restarted and allowed to run until the cleaning device was properly inflated before the buffed shoes could be cleaned. As it has been thepractice to make this change from one device to the other and back againfor each case of shoes, the time thus consumed has materially decreased the number of shoes which an operator could finish in a day. The alternative practice of course has been'to have two machines, one of which was adjusted and equipped for builing and the other one for cleaning. The extra investmentand the additional floor-space required for the twol machines are obvious objections to this practice, and the-second handling of the shoes not only consumed time, but was detrimental to their shape.

An important object of the present invention is to provide one machine by which the several portions of the shoe-bottom can be properly bued and vthen cleaned with a sing e handling of the shoe.

To this end a feature of the invention consists in a machine ofthe classldescribed provided lwith a plurality of devices eachv comprising a support and an abrasive covering and having provision for su plymg air under ressure to the devices an means for reguatin the relative sup lycf air to the different evices. Preferably each support will be readily removable, so that the machine .conform readily to the contouraof the er`- may be conveniently equipped with supports and coverings having the desired characteristics.

The several features of the invention, including certain details of nstruction and combinations of parts, will be fully explained in the following specification and pointed outA in the clai1ns.

ln the accompan ing drawings, which show a preferred em odiment of the invention, Figure 1 is a side elevation of the machine. Fig. 2 is a section on line 2 2 of Fig. 3 through a buing device which is constructed particularly with reference to buing or shanking out the rear part ofthe sole in the angle made by the shank and the breast of the heel. Fig. 3 is a perspective View of the upper portion of the machine shown in Fig. 1-. Fig. 4 is a section on line 4 4 of Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a view, partly in section and on a larger scale, of the bufling device shown in Fig. 2. 6 is a similar view of the device which is employed for cleaning the shoe after it has been buiied.

The standard 1 of the machine supports a head 2, which is provided with an air-reservoir 4 and contains an air-compressor of suitable construction, by which air is forced under. pressure into the reservoir.

The compressor is operated b a crank on a shaft 6, which isdriven by a elt 8 from a pulley on the main shaft 10.

To the front end of the head (see Fig. 3) is secured a spindle-bracket 12, in which is journaled a spindle 14, having pulleys 15 and 16. The spindle is' driven by a belt 18, passing from the pulley 15 over idlers 19 to a pulley on the main shaft.

` The head 2 has a laterally-projecting arm 20, herein shown as secured directly to the reservoir 4, the forwardly-bent free end of which supports a spindle-bracket 22, in which is a spindle 24, having a pulley 26.

A belt 28'passes'from' the pulley 26 to thev pulley 16 on the spindle 14, so th t the second spindle is driven from the spindle 14.

A brace 30, extending from the bracket 12 to the bracket 22 below the level of the belt 28, assists in holding the brackets rigid-ly at the roper distance apart.

T e spindle 24 is provided with a holder 32 for a buiing device A, herein shown as comprising a pneumatic support 34 and an abrasive covering 36.. The support has a well-deiined angular edge portion of solid rubber and; a stiff thick lower wall. The edges of the mouth of the vpneumatic support and the edge of the abrasive covering are clamped tightly between the members 37 and 38v of the holder. The spindle 24V is tubular, as shown in Fig..2, and the opening therein connects with an air-conduit leading through the arm 20 to the air-reservoir 4.

.thus control the extent to which said support is inflated.

' The spindle 14 is provided with a holder 42 for a cleaning device B, shown as comprising a pneumatic support 44 and an abrasive covering 46. The pneumatic support 44 has thinner and more exible Walls than the support 34 and has a rounded fiexible edge portion. The edges ofthe mouth of the support 44 and the free edges of'the abrasive covering 46 are clamped between the members 47 48 of the holder 42.

The spindle 14 is tubular and has connection through a conduit, as shown in Fig. 4, with the air-reservoir. y

When the pneumatic support 44 is iniated, as shown in Fig. 6, it is distended to present a convex lower face and a rounded edge. This forms a cleaning device'which is ver yielding, so that it conforms readily to t econtour of the surface presented to it an'd which is free from any angular projections which might abrade the work unevenly.

The air-reservoir 4 is provided with a relief-valve having a cap-piece 50, which may 9o be adjusted to regulate the pressure of air in the cleaning device B.

The valve 40 enables the pressure of air in the bufling device A tobe adjustably regulated with relation .to the pressure in the cleaning device B, and preferabl said valve will be'adjusted to allow only s cient air to enter the pneumatic support 34 to cushion the lower face of said sup ort without distending it materially. lf esired, the pneu- 10o matic supcport 34 may be replaced by a support of a iferent kind.

The machine is-equipped with a fan and with flues extending to the buiiing and cleaning devices for drawing" away the dust prom5 i port gives to the bufling device a thin angu- I 15` lar edge adapted to act upon the surfaces in the angle formed by the shank of the sole and the breast of the heel. In practice the greater part of the buflng operation is done by' the edge and marginal portion of `this i zo buffing device. When the surfaces being finished have been properly buHed, the shoe` is presented to the cleaning device B, which conforms readily to the surface'being treated and is provided with a suitably-fine abrasive 12 5 covering to adapt it to remove any scratches or inequalities in the surface left by the buH- ing device and to rub up the nap to give the finished shoe-bottern a velvety appearance.

It will he observed that the bufling and clean- 13o ing devices are so located that the shoe may be presented first to the one and thento the other While the operator stands in the same position, so that the iinishing of the shoe- `bottom may be effected by a single handling of the shoe and Without any loss of time between the bufiing and cleaning operations.' The valve 40 provides means by which the relative supply of air to the two devices may be regulated in accordance with the preference of different operators or the conditions presented by different classes of Work. By closing the valve the air may be entirely cut of from the spindle 24 and the supplying means rendered inoperative for delivering air to the buffing device carried by that spindle.` This arrangement avoids wasting the compressed air when device A is not in use' and also permits the use on the spindle 24 of a bufiing device of a different type, if desired.

Having explained the nature of this invention and described a preferred embodiment thereof,I claim as new and desire to secure .by Letters Patent of the United States- 1 In a machine of the class described, a plurality of rotary devices for operating on the bottoms of shoes, each device comprising aholder, a pneumatic support and an abrasive covering; combined with means for supplying air under pressure, including an aircompressor, and conduits leading from the compressor through each of the holders to the pneumatic supports and means for regulating the relative supply of air to the difierent pneumatic supports.

2. In a machine for operating on the bottoms of shoes, a rotary device comprising a pneumatic sup'port and an abrasive'covering; combined with a second rotaryqdevice comprising a support and an abrasive; covering; mechanism for actuating said devices;

means adapted to supply air under pressure to said devices; and means for rendering the air-supplying means operative or inoperative for supplying air to the second device.

In testimony whereof I have signedmy name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing Witnesses.

ANDREW W. ROGERS.

Witnesses:

BERTHA H. HATHAWAY, NELSON W. HOWARD. 

